FIGS – or Focused Identification of Germplasm Strategy – is a new technique for searching agricultural genebanks that helps crop breeders and their managers to achieve faster and better targeted pinpointing of improved crops. This approach helps genebank managers, crop breeders, development agencies and donors to improve the effectiveness of crop improvement programs

New crop cultivars with improved tolerance to heat and drought, and resistance to emerging virulent pests and diseases, are desperately needed in the Dry Areas. Recent advances will be discussed at an international workshop this week.

Wheat is the world’s most important food crop. In the developing world it is the second most important crop after rice. Demand for wheat currently outstrips the world’s ability to produce it – an ability that is also constantly under threat from new diseases, rampant pests and a changing climate...

By using the FIGS ‘eco-geographical’ data of a dataset of plant genetic material with resistance to a specific trait, such as resistance to diseases or pests, researchers were able to successfully identify a number of novel genes from environmentally similar sites.

FIGS was applied in the ICARDA genebank to find sources of resistance to Sunn pest (Eurygaster integriceps), the major pest of wheat in West and Central Asia and eastern Europe. Sunn Pest can cause 100 per cent losses, but most importantly affects the bread quality even at very low infestation...